Tales Of Wisdom (Teeth, That Is)
by ArticulateFiction
Summary: Patrick has to have his wisdom teeth extracted, and David gets to deal with the aftermath of him high on anesthetic.


Hello, friends!

Well, here I am with another ridiculous yet fluffy story about my favourite TV couple. I may have developed a slight problem...

By the way, does anyone know if we have a name for this ship yet?! I'd like to name my first born after it.

Any ways, thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy :)

-ArticulateFiction

Tales Of Wisdom (Teeth, That Is)

Patrick walked up the street to the Rose Apothecary, dragging his feet all the way from his parked vehicle. The afternoon sun was shining, but he was feeling unchracteriscally crabby. He had just gotten back into town after having been in Elmdale for a regular dental check-up, where he had learnt he'd be re-visiting the office in a few days time. He pushed open the door to the store, where the sight of his boyfriend nit-picking at a display Patrick had set up that morning did nothing to ease his disgruntled mood. David always hated his display efforts, so he supposed he really shouldn't be surprised.

David turned away from the display to face Patrick as soon as he heard the door open. "You know, you really should leave these things to me," he said with an insincere wince as he gestured towards the display. "I always end up having to re-do them anyways."

Patrick rolled his eyes and headed over to the back room to hang his jacket up, refraining from responding to David's remark. He returned to the front and propped his elbows up on the cash register counter, allowing his hands to hold his chin up as he glared at his partner. This seemed to throw David off - normally he was up for a bit of banter when David made comments like that.

"_Okay," _David said uneasily, making his way slowly to the cash register. "I take it we didn't have much fun at our appointment?" He leaned forward to perch himself on the counter and mirror Patrick with his own chin in his hands, waiting for a reply with raised eyebrows.

Patrick softened marginally. It wasn't David's fault his upcoming, relaxing weekend had just been ruined. "I have to have my wisdom teeth extracted," he explained grumpily. There wasn't a lot that really rattled Patrick, but he had to admit to himself that something about dental work made him want to cringe. He hated going to the dentist so that they could poke, prod, and scrape his teeth, but up until recently his visits had been relatively bearable. Now he was going to have to have what was technically _mouth_ _surgery_.

David scrunched his face in mild disgust. "Oh my god, _ew_," he said as he shook his head. "Why is _that _a thing that's happening?"

Patrick dropped his chin and let his arms fall in front of him to stretch out on the counter toward David, still leaning on his elbows. "Apparently they're close to being 'impacted'".

"Okay, so… let's pretend that I don't know what that means," David replied quietly, a perplexed look on his face that Patrick thought was almost adorable enough to make him forget his misery.

He fought the smirk trying to spread across his face. "It means my wisdom teeth are at risk for running into my back molars, which I've been informed would be rather painful. So they've got to come out."

David quirked an eyebrow and chewed on his lips in thought. "Isn't this something that most people have done when they're... a teenager?"

"Yes," Patrick said, slightly defensive. "I guess it wasn't really necessary for me at the time. But apparently they continue to move around, even in adulthood." This had caught him off guard - he had always thought he had made a lucky escape from his wisdom teeth needing extracted.

David squinted his eyes at him now as if he was doing something ridiculous. "Well... then why don't they just take _everybody's _out when they're a teenager if there's a strong possibility they will need to come out when they're an adult any ways?"

Patrick tutted and shook his head. "_I don't know,_ David - I'm not the dentist in this situation."

"Well. I suppose that's fair," David admitted, finally relenting his questions. "So… this is happening soon, then… or?"

"Friday," he answered sourly, propping his chin back in his hands. "Which means I get to spend the whole weekend sitting around at home, eating mashed potatoes and applesauce while popping pain meds."

David was now obviously trying not to laugh at Patrick's displeasure, much to his chagrin. "As opposed to… still sitting around at home but... eating _leftover pizza_ instead?"

"Exactly," Patrick answered, small smile tugging at his lips in spite of himself. His plans for the weekend might not be considered grand, but it was his time to wind-down and he hated when he had to alter those plans in any capacity. Unless they involved David, that is… then he found he was usually more than willing to make the sacrifice. "Will you still be coming over?"

David scrunched his nose up again. "Is there going to be... _blood_ involved?"

Patrick shrugged his shoulders. "Just a little, at first. But I'll be in a fair bit of pain and discomfort… I could certainly use the company." He wasn't above resorting to guilt.

David looked divided. "Well… if your boyfriend asks you to come over and keep him company after he has invasive dental surgery, I feel like the correct answer to that question would be… 'yes'?

Apparently David was learning. Patrick sarcastically nodded his head in agreement. "Seems like the correct answer to me, yeah."

"Well," David said, closing his eyes and nodding his head, "then yes, I _will_ be coming over." He opened his eyes again to look at Patrick. "I'll still need to work Saturday, though. So, I'll come over after that?"

It was Patrick's turn to cringe now. "I, uh… actually need you to drive me to the appointment Friday afternoon, as well. If... that's alright?"

David's eyes went wide. "Oh," he said with a slight shake of his head, obviously surprised by the request. To be fair, Patrick hardly ever asked him for favours.

"Yeah… I won't be able to drive after the surgery. They have to put me under." Unfortunately, he couldn't afford to pay for a taxi to take him all the way to Elmdale and then all the way back to Schitt's Creek.

He watched David's surprised look transform into something that closer resembled maniac glee. "_Oh," _he repeated, smirking deviously at Patrick. "Does this mean that, uh… I get to see you _high?_" he asked incredulously.

Patrick gave him a pointed look and tried to keep from smiling back. "I'm not sure I would call it _that_, David. Although I've been told they can't let me drive myself home afterwards. So..."

David's sly smile stood firm on his face. "Oh, I will _absolutely _be driving you home from this appointment, yes." He leaned forward a few inches to give Patrick a quick peck on the lips before he could reply, then stood up and sauntered off towards the back room without another word.

Patrick watched him leave, lightly biting his bottom lip and narrowing his eyes at the other man's back. The sudden, ominous feeling that he had just made a very terrible mistake was settling within him.

"Okay, all closed up," David said excitedly on Friday afternoon, flipping the "Open" sign on the shop's front door to the "Closed" side. "Time to go to your appointment." He turned around to give Patrick a sinful smile as he put his sunglasses on.

Patrick rolled his eyes and slipped his jacket on. "You know, you could act a _little_ less excited that I'm about to have four teeth _cut _out of my _face_," Patrick said sarcastically, failing at trying not to let it get to him. David had been bugging him all morning about his surgery - mainly just about how he hoped Patrick reacted to the anesthetic like all those people you see in videos on the internet did. Patrick knew it was a standard procedure done everyday, but he was antsy nonetheless and David's jeering was not easing his nerves.

David seemed to see through his facade and realize that Patrick was genuinely worried about it. His smile became less devilish and more apologetic, and he pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head. "_Okay_, I'm sorry…" he said, shaking his head and rolling his eyes up to the ceiling as he stepped forward to wrap his arms around Patrick's neck. He focused his eyes back on Patrick's. "I don't think I've ever seen you so… _distressed_ about something."

"I'm not _distressed_, I just-"

"Patrick… you know that everything will be fine, right?" David asked quietly, cutting him off. "I'm pretty sure they do this procedure, like... _every_ single day, so..." Patrick swallowed thickly and quickly nodded and hummed his agreement, although the look on David's face told him that he wasn't very convincing.

David gave him another sympathetic smile. Obviously unable to think of anything else to say, he leaned in to give Patrick a gentle kiss instead. Patrick breathed out a long breath as their lips slotted together, some of the tension of the morning draining out of him as he let his brain drift off and focus solely on his partner. When they eventually parted, he gave David a small, grateful smile. David wasn't exactly a natural at comforting people, so he did appreciate whenever he put in an effort - and he _did_ feel somewhat comforted. "Thanks."

David returned the smile for a few seconds, then the glint in his eyes was back. "And don't worry," he said, releasing Patrick's neck and resting his hands on his shoulders instead. "I brought the _good _camera to film you with on our drive home."

Patrick bit his bottom lip to keep from laughing and shook his head. "_So close,"_ he said sarcastically. David grinned back at him and shrugged his shoulder at the mock praise, spinning towards the door to open it and gesturing for Patrick to go through first with a cocky wink.

David was sitting in the waiting room of Patrick's dentist office, skimming an outdated home-design magazine from nearly fourteen years ago. Although he had been somewhat excited to close the store a few hours early on a Friday, he wasn't exactly _enjoying_ his time away from work. He had agreed to take Patrick to his appointment - partly out of obligation and partly because he was looking forward to the aftermath - but he hadn't considered how boring the wait would be.

The dentist had originally told him to plan for "about an hour". The one hour mark came and went - prompting David to become slightly impatient - but he maintained his temper as best he could. Then another half hour went by, and he was slowly moving past impatience and closer to becoming concerned. Now unable to focus on the magazine, he kept looking up at the closed door that lead to the dental chairs, willing someone to come in and give him an update and eliminate the rising panic within him. Nobody came to put him out of his misery.

The possibility that there had been some sort of complication circled around his brain more and more the closer the clock came to the two hour mark. For all he knew, Patrick was in some sort of _medical turmoil_ \- a thought that caused his stomach to flip unpleasantly and his heart to race. Finally reaching his breaking point, he slammed the magazine shut and rushed over to the lady at the front desk. He needed some sort of information.

"Um, hi, yes - excuse me," he said hurriedly, waiting for the lady to look up and give him her full attention. She finished writing something on a form and looked up at him, smiling politely as she waited for him to go on. "Hi. I, uh… don't suppose you would have any sort of _update _on my boyfriend?" he asked, swallowing thickly and spreading his hands out on the top of her desk. "Patrick Brewer? I'm just, uh… starting to get a little bit worried. They said it would only be about an hour...so..."

"Hmm," the lady hummed, typing something into her computer to evidently look something up. "It does seem they're running a bit late, doesn't it?" She didn't look overly concerned, but the comment caused David to bite his bottom lip with anticipation. "Let me run back there and see if I can get an update, okay?" she said politely, giving him a reassuring smile.

"That would be great, thank you," he said, breathing out the breath he had been holding for a while. He paced slightly in front of her desk with his arms across his chest, waiting in suspense for her to return. Luckily, she came back within a couple of minutes, a calming smile still on her face.

"Everything went fine," she said soothingly, causing him to exhale another long breath and nod his head. "They're just giving him a little bit of extra time to come to before they send him home with you. It seems he was rather… _responsive_ to the anesthetic. He just woke up a few minutes ago, but he'll be out shortly."

The thumping in his chest was starting to slow to a more normal, human pace as she spoke, but he knew he'd need to see Patrick in the flesh before he was completely placated. "Okay... so, do we know exactly how long '_shortly'_ is?" he asked with a slight wince. She bit the bottom of her lip and started to shake her head. "It's just… I can only take so many articles about outdated, tuscan-themed kitchens and sponge-painted accent walls…"

"It will really only be a few more minutes," she responded with a firmer tone, her patience clearly starting to wear thin.

"_Right, _okay… thank you," he said with a tight smile. Feeling as if he had been scolded, he wandered back over to his chair in the waiting room and plopped himself back down in it to continue waiting. He crossed one leg over the other and tapped his foot on the ground impatiently, waiting for the door to open. Perhaps he was allowing his anxiety to sway this thoughts, causing him to be a tad overdramatic - but he couldn't help it. He certainly wouldn't be a Rose if that wasn't the case.

True to their word, a dental assistant in green scrubs came through the waiting room door less than five minutes after he had asked about Patrick. She spotted David at once and gave him a polite smile as she made her way over to him. David shot up from his chair to meet her halfway, anxiously looking for Patrick behind her as the door closed shut.

"David?" she asked. "You're taking Patrick home, yes?"

"Yes," David nodded eagerly, still looking for someone else to come through the door as he kept his arms across his chest. "Is everything still alright?"

"Everything went great," she replied, giving him a knowing smile. "I just wanted to go over a couple of things with you since Patrick is still going to be recovering from the anesthetic for another couple of hours."

"Oh…" David replied with a small nod, eyes still flicking between her and the closed door. "And when you say... '_recovering'..."_

The assistant opened her mouth to reply, but the waiting room door opened up again and whatever she was going to say died on her tongue. David's eyebrows shot up to the top of his forehead and his mouth hung open a bit at the sight of his boyfriend having to be helped through the door by two other assistants - one on either side of him holding him up by his biceps.

"_Oh, my…_" he said quietly, his hands coming up to cup either side of his own face as he shook his head slightly and tried not to laugh. It really was just like the videos he had seen on the internet. Patrick was wobbling in his spot as the girls tried to hold him straight, looking around the waiting room with rather glassy eyes as if he had no idea where he was - and at this point, David knew he probably didn't.

The first assistant tried to suppress her smile as she turned back towards David. "Yes…. So if I could just give _you_ this information?"

She proceeded to list off all the of possible side effects Patrick may have over the next couple days, as well as what he should be doing to keep the stitched areas in the back of his mouth clean to avoid any possible infections or dry socket. She listed off some common food items that would be ideal for the next couple of days, but said as long as it was soft and not in tiny pieces that can get caught in the open holes it was really up to Patrick's discretion. She gave him a little folder that included all the information she just had just dictated to him, and told him if there's any complications to just give the office a call.

"Oh - and the bleeding had pretty much subsided by the time he woke up, but if you notice it start again just have him place some more gauze in the affected area. And you'll be driving him home from here?" she confirmed.

Before he could reply, Patrick seemed to suddenly notice David was there despite the fact that he had been looking around the room for nearly two minutes. "David!" he exclaimed dreamily. He broke free of the two other assistants' grasps and toppled over towards David, pulling him into a tight hug, nearly knocking them both over. "I'm so glad you came to watch my performance."

"Okay, _yep_..." David muttered, trying to keep Patrick from falling over and patting him gently on the back as he tried to fight his smile. "Yes, I will definitely be doing the driving," he answered, readdressing the assistant. "I think we're just gonna… take off… now," he said, struggling to release himself from Patrick's grip so that he could turn him towards the exit. "Thank you ladies very much," he yelled over his shoulder, gently pulling Patrick towards the door.

"Thank you and _goodnight_!" Patrick yelled back to them, raising his fist in the air at the women as David finally wrangled him out the door. He turned back around in David's arms as soon as they were outside. "Hey, do you know where my boyfriend went?" he inquired, eyes starting to close as he allowed himself to be directed to the car. "He promised he'd escort me home."

"Mm, I think I heard him say he couldn't bear to wait anymore with nothing but editorials on tacky wallpaper to keep him entertained," he answered sarcastically with a smirk, finally reaching the passenger side door and opening it, careful not to hit the man hanging off his side. The satire seemed lost on Patrick, but he carried on the joke any ways. "Luckily, I was available to... _escort_ you home, as you so refer to it."

He tried to gently maneuver him into the passenger seat, but his job was made difficult when Patrick suddenly turned around in his grip to face him again. "I really appreciate that, man," Patrick said sincerely, his eyes trying to focus on David's as his hands came up to cup either side of his face. "I can't wait to tell him all about how kind you are."

David sucked his lips into his mouth to keep from laughing and nodded his head slowly. He had never seen Patrick this way before, and he was never going to let him live this down. "Yes, I'm sure he'll agree. Now let's get _in_ the car, okay?"

"Okay," Patrick agreed with another misty smile, his eyes half-closed as he allowed David to fold him into the passenger seat and shut the door. David quickly ran around to the driver side of the vehicle and pulled open the door, hopping into the seat to start the engine. Patrick's head was now leaning back against the headrest, and he was still smiling contently with his eyes closed. "And what, pray tell, is my salvager's name?"

"Your '_salvager'_?" he asked, eyebrows arching up his forehead as he shook his head in disbelief and smirked at the terminology. "Wow, I'm sorry... I didn't realize the anesthetic had transformed you into some sort of, uh… _damsel in distress._" He glanced over to the passenger side, but again the joke seemed to go over Patrick's head. "It's David," he finally answered with a small laugh and an eyeroll, realizing joking with him in this condition was probably pointless. He pulled out of the parking spot and heading down the road towards Schitt's Creek.

"No way!" Patrick shot up in his seat with a big smile on his face as he looked in David's direction. "_My boyfriend's_ name is David!" It was everything David could do not to pull over and take his phone out to start filming what would surely give him a never ending supply of blackmail material. As hilarious as it was to see his boyfriend in such an unusually ridiculous state, he didn't have it in him to actually film what was happening - even if he hadn't been driving. He was sure his recap tomorrow would be embarrassing enough for Patrick.

"Shocking," David responded, shaking his head in pretend astonishment as he continued to grin. "What are the chances of _that_?"

"You'd love him," Patrick insisted, returning his head to rest on the back of his seat as he closed his eyes again. "I know you would."

"Oh, would I?" Maybe he _did_ need to get that camera out...

"Oh yeah," Patrick answered, nodding his head drowsily in confirmation. "_Everybody_ loves him."

David couldn't help his smile spreading further at the flattery, despite the fact that he felt more than certain that that wasn't true. Patrick was never one to shy away from complimenting him, but something about this point of view made him realize that Patrick seemed to genuinely believe what he was saying - and that he wasn't just saying it for David's benefit. He currently thought he was talking to a stranger, after all. "Well, he sounds _great_."

"Mmm, he is," Patrick answered, his eyes opening as he stared into the distance with an affectionate look on his face. "He's nearly perfect."

"Just '_nearly'_ perfect?" David asked jokingly. Despite the question, he felt the butterflies in his stomach swooping at Patrick's high praise. This went a bit beyond ordinary compliments.

"Well, his singing voice isn't exactly a marvel," Patrick explained dryly, his expression suddenly quite serious. He seemed incapable of keeping his eyes open for very long and they start to shut again.

David couldn't help but laugh out loud at that response because he knew that was putting it mildly. He was not an excellent singer - at least in comparison to Patrick - and he knew it. "Certainly not as good a singer as you."

Patrick smirked and shrugged his shoulder. "That's true. I am very talented."

"And so very _modest_…" David whispered under his breath with a sly smile.

Patrick's eyes fluttered open again as he looked ahead, the romantic, starry-eyed look back on his face. "I still love to listen to him sing, though. Around the shop… in the car..." He paused a few moments, David's chest swelling with warmth at Patrick's admission. "Okay, I take it back," he said with an exhale. "He _is_ perfect."

David bit his bottom lip, although it wasn't enough to keep the sappy smile on his face from spreading. "Hm… can I get that in _writing_? I feel like that may come in handy the next time you're irritated with me for insulting your design concepts at the store. I'm also, like... _ninety _percent certain you aren't going to remember any of this conversation… so."

"Sure," Patrick said amiably, closing his eyes again and sighing in content as his head fell back against the headrest. "I'll mail it out in the morning."

David nodded his head. "Right, _okay._"

"Your car is comfy," Patrick murmured.

"Mhm, well this is actually _your_ car...so-"

"Such a nice guy, driving a stranger home like this," Patrick talked over him, sounding like he may actually fall asleep soon.

"Well, I do what I can…" David replied, continuing with his strategy of just going along with whatever Patrick said. It's not like was retaining anything right now.

"And don't worry - I'll make sure to invite you to the wedding, too."

David felt his heart stutter and his breath catch in his throat at the completely out-of-the-blue statement. Whether it was out of shock or the intense flush of love he suddenly felt, he wasn't quite sure. Maybe it was both. It took him a few seconds longer than it would have normally to find his voice and reply, but luckily Patrick wasn't in a state to notice. ""Oh, that's- I didn't realize you were, uh... thinking about… _marriage._"

Once upon a time, the thought of permanently tying himself to one person would have terrified him. Even now, he felt like he _should_ be completely horrified by what his boyfriend had just said. Nobody would have been as surprised as he was in that moment, though, to discover that he felt the thought of marrying Patrick was anything but scary. Not for the first time, he wondered how exactly the man beside him caused him to second-guess everything that he thought he had known about himself.

"Oh yeah," Patrick said matter-of-factly. "I think we'll probably be doing an early-spring wedding. David has a certain affinity for cherry blossoms."

David could only shake his head in reply, biting his bottom lip even harder than before to keep his grin at bay. Everything about Patrick's answer made his heart feel like it might explode. He had said it as if it was fact - as if them getting married was always what was going to happen and any suggestion otherwise would be irrelevant. He also supposed he shouldn't be surprised that he completely agreed with Patrick - he _would_ want an early-spring wedding if he was to have one. He could feel his eyes were getting misty, and he was suddenly very happy that Patrick's eyes were still firmly shut as he remained completely oblivious to the effect he had had on David.

David tried to compose himself quickly, never one to deal well with emotionally charged moments. He reminded himself that Patrick was high as fuck and that he could just be spouting off nonsense, which helped rein his emotions in a little bit. They continued to drive in silence for a few minutes before David chanced a look at Patrick, who appeared to have fallen asleep. He softened again and couldn't help but smile at the sight of him.

It _could_ just be nonsense. Deep down though, he knew it was more likely that Patrick was revealing real feelings that he probably hadn't been ready to discuss yet. It wouldn't be that surprising that he was interested in marriage - he had technically been engaged once before. It also didn't surprise David that they hadn't really discussed it before now. Most people knew David's previous stance on marriage and his lack of trust in long-term commitment. Patrick was probably worried beyond belief to bring it up.

The key word there, though, was "_previous"._ David - and quite frankly, everyone around him - knew that Patrick had brought out a change in him. This was his longest, healthiest relationship ever. David had been the one to first use the term "boyfriend" to label their relationship, which shocked the both of them. He had allowed himself to fall in love, and he had allowed himself to admit it to both himself and Patrick.

He had also accidentally shown Patrick all of his metaphorical cards when he misunderstood his intentions while they were apartment hunting. David had thought it was for the both of them, and he had just gone along with it because he thought they were ready for that. He had never lived with a romantic partner before, but when it came to living with Patrick there had been nothing to fear. He was willing to admit to himself that he had been slightly disappointed when Patrick had to correct him. There was perhaps even a nagging voice in the back of his head telling him that Patrick just wasn't interested in the long-term commitment that David wanted.

But if David had any lingering concerns before now that Patrick wasn't ready to commit to him long-term, they had just been blown out of the water thanks to his impaired babbling.

Patrick awoke on his sofa, head resting against what he knew must be David's warm lap. He could feel a large, soft hand gently carding itself through his hair. Although it wasn't the worst way to wake up, his mouth and eyes both felt dry, and he couldn't remember how he had gotten there. The last thing he remembered clearly was his dentist instructing him to count backwards from 100 while they put a mask over his head. He wasn't even sure if he got past the first ten digits.

The hand on his head suddenly became still as he shifted slightly in his position. He looked up towards David, who had stopped reading his book and was now looking down at him with a mischievous smirk. The fact that he couldn't remember what had happened coupled with that devious smile suddenly made him very nervous. _Please tell me I just slept the whole way home…_ he thought to himself.

"Still tripping balls?" David asked bluntly.

_Guess not..._

He blinked his eyes and slowly sat up with a sigh, mentally preparing himself for David's taunting. "How long have I been asleep for?"

"Oh good - you _are _done with that," he replied, equal parts amused and relieved. "About 3 hours. Although, we also had a couple of hours to, uh... _chat... _before you fell asleep. So we've been home about 5 hours."

"Great," Patrick replied sarcastically, nodding his head slowly as he leaned back into the sofa. "So, have I gone viral yet?" He was only half-kidding - he really wasn't sure if David had been serious about that or not.

David rolled his eyes good-naturedly and shrugged his shoulders. "I _may_ have decided to spare you... But only because I couldn't drive and film at the same time, so..." He reached for a glass of water on the coffee table and handed it to Patrick. "Here."

Patrick smirked and accepted the water, drinking immediately to get some moisture back in his mouth. "Thanks," he said sincerely, referring to both the lack of home video and the water.

"How's your face?" David asked with a slight cringe, giving Patrick's jaw area a once over with his eyes.

Patrick shrugged his shoulders. "I can't really feel much right now, to be honest. Those painkillers must be working overtime."

"Actually, I made you take more when we got home. Trust me," he said confidently, "it is much better to prepare ahead when the pain is inevitable, rather than waiting for it to get bad before you take anything."

"Oh," Patrick said, slightly surprised that David had had the foresight to have him take more before he fell asleep. It was actually a rather smart approach. "Good idea." He couldn't help but poke around the back of his teeth with his tongue, but the holes and stitches he found made him surprisingly uncomfortable and he quickly stopped. "Am I all puffy?" he asked as he brought his hands up to gently feel around his jaw.

"No," David answered. "But they said if you do notice any swelling it probably won't be until tomorrow."

Patrick tried to think back to when they would have told him that, but he couldn't remember anything about it. "When did they say that?"

David leaned towards the coffee table again and picked up a folder with his dentist's information on it. "I got the whole spiel before we went home. You weren't exactly able to _retain_ much, so, uh… they thought it would be a good idea to fill me in. Everything's in here if you want to read it, though," he said as he passed it over. "I already read through everything when we got home, so." Patrick couldn't help the small bout of affection he felt as David spoke. Few people got to experience this side of David Rose - the side that took care of the people he loved when they needed it, even if it often included plenty of griping.

Eventually, his mind drifted back to the fact that he still couldn't remember any of what had happened since he arrived at the dentist. It was an odd feeling, very similar to the few times he had woken up in college after a particularly long night out. There was a sort of dread that came from not being _sure_ if you had done something horribly stupid, but knowing that you _probably _had. "So, uh… what did we talk about?"

David sucked his lips into his mouth to keep his smile from getting too wide. "Well, we had a _very_ eye-opening conversion about the merits of toilet paper," he replied teasingly.

Patrick's eyes widened marginally at that response. "Any… particular reason for why _that_ came up?" He was curious, but he supposed there were worse things they could have talked about. He could handle toilet paper.

"Oh, no - no reason. You just felt the need to share _so many _of your opinions on various items..."

"Oh," he said, feeling uneasy again. "So we discussed _several _things, then." He took another gulp of water and avoided making eye contact with David, whose smirk was not helping his nerves.

"Oh _yes," _David answered, turning his body in his spot toward Patrick to make sure he looked back at him. "We also talked about your disdain for the Tooth Fairy, and how… and I quote… 'that _bitch _better have your _money_'," he said, eyebrows high on his forehead as he shook his head in incredulity. "And yes, you _did_ sing that particular line à la Rihanna."

"Excellent...," Patrick muttered quietly, turning to avoid David's smug look again. His appreciation for David not filming him deepened, but the knowledge that David had still heard that didn't do much to comfort him.

"Mm, I wish it stopped there," David continued, clearly loving his chance to storytell Patrick's antics. "There was also the rant about how your apartment on the _moon_ is so much nicer than this one... and of course, the discussion of how tedious it is to have to remember to _breathe_." Patrick simply stared at the wall with pursed lips, unable to answer for his own ridiculous behavior. "And it turns out you are _very_ affectionate while under the influence of anesthetic." The slight change in tone caused Patrick to awkwardly glance over to the side, where he saw David's face was the cockiest it had been yet. "You told me all about your 'perfect' boyfriend, and how absolutely _fantastic _he is."

That particular piece of information caused him to smile in spite of himself. He had always been a rather amorous drunk, so it didn't surprise him. "So what you're saying, then, is that I was _completely_ delusional," he quipped sarcastically, unable to resist a chance to tease David back amongst an avalanche of embarrassing details about his own foolishness.

David narrowed his eyes and tried to fight his smile at the remark. "_Were_ _you_, though?" He quirked an eyebrow at him. "Or were you just completely _honest?"_

Patrick rolled his eyes and laughed lightly. If he was being candid, he thought the world of David. That was the only thing so far that he didn't regret saying to David while under the influence. "I suppose there might be a _little_ bit of truth to that…" he admitted with sincerity.

David's smile became more tender, causing the familiar warmth that seemed reserved just for him to spread through Patrick's chest. "There was, uh… even a _proposal_," he said with a slight wince, a flash of reluctance behind his smile now as if he wasn't sure if he should mention it.

Patrick stared at him for a couple of seconds before answering, his mouth hanging open slightly and feeling as if his brain had suddenly short-circuited. "A... proposal?"

"Mhm," David nodded, biting his lip again. "Yeah - apparently you've decided we'll be having an 'early-spring' wedding…" he was still smiling, but it was much less confident than it had been a few moments earlier.

Patrick was in near shock and unsure about what he should say. Of course the thought of marrying and dying old with David had crossed his mind - nearly everyday, in fact, since David had first admitted that he loved him back. But he knew David had certain apprehensions about marriage, and he had had zero intention of discussing it with him any time soon. _Especially_ not like this - this was how you scared people like David away forever. Of all the things he could have said, why did it have to be _that?_

Several more seconds went by, and David was still chewing his lip waiting for some sort of reply. Realizing that David had still been here when he woke up, Patrick decided he must not have scared him _too_ bad. He had said a lot of crazy things, after all. Maybe he could feel it out and fall back on his excuse of inebriation if it looked like David was about to be spooked. "And, uh… how did _that_ go over?"

David's expression remained unchanged as he studied Patrick's. "Well, to be honest it was less of a _proposal_ and more of a…" he pursed his lips in thought. "Well, more of an _assumption._"

"An assumption," Patrick repeated, still trying to figure out what was going on in David's mind as he held his gaze. Did he want Patrick to say it had just been nonsense and move on? Or is this something that he thought they should discuss?

Before he could figure it out, David spoke first. "Is that, um- something that you…" he started, looking around the room awkwardly, "_wanted… _you know… for us? At some point? Or…"

Patrick swallowed thickly, finding it even harder to read David when he averted his eyes away. He could hear his heart pumping in his ears, and he knew whatever he said next would be important. He didn't want to chase David away, but he didn't want to play down his long-term intentions. He eventually settled on being honest, turning his body on the couch slightly to better look at David. He let out a long breath, then finally answered the question. "I want to be with you for a long, long time, David."

David's eyes found his again and he gave him a small, knowing smile. "Well I would _hope_ that'd be the case," he said, looking slightly less awkward. "But is the whole... _marriage_ thing," he gestured between the two of them as he spoke, "is that, like… important to you?"

It was, of course. But he wasn't sure what David's opinion on it was, and he was willing to push off the conversation for a relatively long time if it meant nothing between them had to change right now. He struggled to find the words he wanted, but something behind David's eyes was telling him that he may already know the answer to the question he had asked.

"It is _somewhat_ important to me, yes," he confirmed, reluctantly nodding his head. "And I'm not going to lie to you, David. I think about marrying you," he added, dropping his gaze to the floor and smiling to himself. "_A lot_." He saw David go completely still in the corner of his eye, and realized he might be coming off as pushy. He quickly focused back on David's face and his next words came out in a hurry. "But David, look - I love you, and it's not _more _important than you and what you wan-"

His sentence was cut off by David grabbing the back of his neck with both hands and nearly slamming their lips together. After an initial second of shock, he sighed and relaxed into the kiss, his hands coming up to rest on the inside of David's elbows. The eagerness with which David kissed him was almost palpable, and he felt immense relief that he had somehow managed to say the right thing.

David pulled back after several long seconds, resting their foreheads together. Patrick could feel his shallow breath on his lips before David closed the distance between them again for a few more short kisses. "You know I love you, too," David close to whispered, his hands moving forward to cup either side of Patrick's face.

"I know," Patrick confirmed quietly. He had never doubted even once that David meant it.

David's gaze was so intense that Patrick felt as if it was penetrating him. "And I'm not sure if you've noticed," he said, voice watery, "but being in a relationship with _you _has made me more than willing to step outside of my regular comfort zone when it comes to romance." He showed a tiny smile as he bit his bottom lip. "It's actually... kind of just... redefined the _entire_ zone," he added, gesturing his spread out hand in a circular motion. Patrick laughed gently at that. The David Rose he met for the first time in Ray's house was certainly not the same David Rose sitting in front of him right now. "And I want you to know… that I think we're on the same page," he finished quietly, looking more vulnerable than Patrick had ever seen him before.

Patrick's breath caught in his throat and his heart seemed to stop as he stared back at David, whose hands had released his face to lay in his lap instead. Not daring to let himself get too excited over nothing, he asked for clarification. "When you say 'same page'..."

David smirked a bit and his eyes went up towards the ceiling as he nodded his head gently. "I mean… that I would not be upset if we... at _some point_... decided to, uh... legally and metaphorically tie ourselves together for the rest of our lives…" he looked back at Patrick with a mixture of anticipation and amusement.

"You mean you'd want to get married at some point?" A grin was slowly stretching across Patrick's face, despite David's reluctance to say it properly. He knew what he meant.

David was having a hard time holding back his own smile now. "Um… isn't that what I just said?"

"Not at all," Patrick replied as he shook his head. Still grinning, he wrapped his arms around David's lower back and leaned in to kiss him again - allowing the ecstasy he was feeling in that moment to flow into their embrace. He could feel David smile into the kiss as his hands came back up to wrap around Patrick's neck.

David was the one to break the kiss again, although he seemed reluctant to do so. "Somehow I don't think this would be considered good practice for recovering from dental surgery," he said, smile still tugging at his lips.

"Probably not," Patrick laughed, rubbing his nose gently against David's before pulling away further. "So, uh... does this mean we're _engaged_ now?"

David gave him a sarcastic smile. "Oh, absolutely not," he replied bluntly, playing with Patrick's hands as he spoke. "When we _do_ officially get engaged, I will be expecting the full shebang."

"Good," Patrick answered sincerely, smiling back at him. "That's how I wanted it to be any ways." He was a romantic at heart, after all. "And, uh… I expect you will also be providing _me _with 'the full shebang' as well, then?" he asked with a teasing smirk.

"Okay, well let's not get _carried away,"_ David replied with a hint of sass. "The fact that I'm going to say 'yes' should be considered a modern day miracle. I will therefore _not_ be the one subjecting myself to also having to do the proposing." Patrick couldn't help the pang of love he felt at hearing David confirm again that he'd be saying yes.

"Fair enough," he said, leaning in for another quick kiss. He had been convinced this weekend would be awful, but he wasn't sure he had ever been so happy in his entire life. David looked just as pleased when they pulled away again.

"I will say that I also strongly approve of your earlier mention of cherry blossoms at the wedding, by the way," David said with a sly smirk. Patrick felt himself blush - he had always kept that tucked away for his own private imagination, but David seemed genuinely pleased with it. David's smile seemed to grow at Patrick's embarrassment. "Very romantic, actually. I think it speaks _very_ strongly towards what kind of proposal I can expect from you."

Suddenly feeling slightly mischievous in retribution for David's teasing, Patrick put on a serious look. "Yeah, you know - I was actually thinking the best way for me to propose to you would be in a massively public setting," he deadpanned. "You know, something dramatic amongst all our friends and family - something that really focuses _all_ of the attention on us."

The lovesick expression on David's face wiped off immediately. "Oh, dear _god_," David gasped with an animated shake of his head, the terror Patrick had been expecting earlier suddenly making an appearance. "_Please_ tell me you're fucking with me."

"Maybe we can do another open mic night?" Patrick asked enthusiastically, ignoring David's obvious distress. "Yeah... I can write my own song this time! Or how about a poem? Hm?"

"Okay, well, then you can enjoy dying sad and alone because I will _literally_ kill myself."

Patrick couldn't help but smirk at that. "Maybe an interpretive dance?"

David hummed at that one, smile starting to return. "Now _that_ I may not hate - _you're_ bound to be the one ending up embarrassed in that situation."

Patrick laughed and finally gave up the charade, leaning in to kiss his boyfriend - mouth surgery be damned. He knew he would find the perfect way to propose when he was ready.

He _did _happen to have a long weekend of recovering at home ahead of him... Maybe this would be his opportunity to dream up the most perfect proposal possible for the most perfect man in his life.

Thanks again to anyone who read! Leave a comment or favourite of you enjoyed it! :)

-ArticulateFiction


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